Module1 Student Exercises

7/31/2019 Module1 Student Exercises

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Call Center Professional DevelopmentProgramModule 1

Communication Skills Training

Students Exercise Booklet

Copyright Informatics Philippines 2004

EditorialTeam:Dalton AbrilloAlma JimeneaAnna MasindoYolly SoliveresEric TiczonBrent Uy


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Exercise 1: Verb Tenses Exercise #1 .......................................................................... 3Exercise 4: Verb Tenses Exercise ............................................................................... 4Exercise 7: Subject-Verb Agreement Exercise............................................................. 5Exercise 9: Oral Reading Exercise .............................................................................. 6Exercise 10: Vowel Sounds Exercise ........................................................................... 8

Exercise 11: Consonant Sounds Exercise ................................................................... 9Exercise 25: Listening #10 ......................................................................................... 10Exercise 27: Reading Comprehension Exercise #1 ................................................... 11Exercise 28: Reading Comprehension Exercise #2 ................................................... 13Exercise 29: Reading Comprehension Exercise #3 ................................................... 15Exercise 30: Capitalization Exercise .......................................................................... 17Exercise 31: Spelling Exercise #1 .............................................................................. 18Exercise 32: Spelling Exercise #2 .............................................................................. 18Exercise 33: Punctuation Marks Exercise .................................................................. 19


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Exercise 1: Verb Tenses Exercise #1

Directions: Practice this exercise with the class. Let them form pairs, let oneparticipant ask the question and the other one answers then switch.

1. What do you do every day?I feed my fish every day.

2. What did you do yesterday?I fed my fish yesterday.

3. What will you do tomorrow?I will feed my fish tomorrow.

4. What are you doing right now?I am feeding my fish right now.

5. What were you doing at this timeyesterday?I was feeding my fish at this timeyesterday.

6. What will you be doing at thistime tomorrow?I will be feeding my fish at thistime tomorrow.

7. What have you done since yougot up this morning?I have fed my fish since I got upthis morning?

8. What had you done before youwent to bed last night?I had fed my fish before I went tobed last night.

9. What will you have done beforeyou go to bed tonight?I will have fed my fish before I goto bed tonight.

10. What are you doing?I am feeding my fish.

11. How long have you been doingthat?I have been feeding my fish forfive minutes.

12. What were you doing before youstarted this quiz?I was feeding my fish before Istarted this quiz.

13. How long had you been doingthat?I had been feeding my fish forfive minutes before I startedthis quiz.

14. What will you be doing beforeyou take this quiz tomorrow?I will be feeding my fish before Itake this quiz tomorrow.

15. How long will you have beendoing that?I will have been feeding myfish five minutes before I takethisquiz tomorrow.


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Exercise 4: Verb Tenses Exercise

Directions: Let participants write the answer to each the following questions using theappropriate verb tense of the irregular verb "eat" (an apple). There is only ONE correctanswer to each question, and it must be in a complete sentence.

EXAMPLE:Question: What do you do every day?

Answer: I eat an apple every day.

1: What do you do every day?

2: What did you do yesterday?

3: What will you do tomorrow?

4: What are you doing right now?

5: What were you doing at this time yesterday?

6: What will you be doing at this time tomorrow?

7: What have you done since you got up this morning?

8: What had you done by the time you went to bed last night?

9: What will you have done by the time you go to bed tonight?

10: What are you doing?

11: How long have you been doing that? (Answer = ...for five minutes.)

12: What were you doing before I walked into the classroom today?

13: How long had you been doing that? (Answer = ...for five minutes before you walked intothe classroom today.)

14: What will you be doing before I walk into the classroom tomorrow?

15: How long will you have been doing that? (...for five minutes before you walk intothe classroom tomorrow.)

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Exercise 7: Subject-Verb Agreement ExerciseDirections: Choose the correct form of the verb that agrees with the subject. Encirclethe correct answer.

1. Annie and her brothers (is, are) at school.

2. Either my mother or my father (is, are) coming to the meeting.

3. The dog or the cats (is, are) outside.

4. Either my shoes or your coat (is, are) always on the floor.

5. George and Tamara (doesn't, don't) want to see that movie.

6. Benito (doesn't, don't) know the answer.

7. One of my sisters (is, are) going on a trip to France.

8. The man with all the birds (live, lives) on my street.

9. The movie, including all the previews, (take, takes) about two hours to watch.

10. The players, as well as the captain, (want, wants) to win.

11. Either answer (is, are) acceptable.

12. Every one of those books (is, are) fiction.

13. Nobody (know, knows) the trouble I've seen.

14. (Is, Are) the news on at five or six?

15. Mathematics (is, are) John's favorite subject, while Civics (is, are) Andrea's favorite subject.

16. Eight dollars (is, are) the price of a movie these days.

17. (Is, Are) the tweezers in this drawer?

18. Your pants (is, are) at the cleaner's.

19. There (was, were) fifteen candies in that bag. Now there (is, are) only one left!

20. The committee (debates, debate) these questions carefully.

21. The committee (leads, lead) very different lives in private.

22. The Prime Minister, together with his wife, (greets, greet) the press cordially.

23. All of the CDs, even the scratched one, (is, are) in this case.

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Exercise 9: Oral Reading Exercise

Directions: Let participants read the following article aloud. Please evaluate eachparticipant and place your comments on the form provided on page 14.

How to Improve Your Telephone VoiceBy Judith FilekPresident, Impact Communications, Inc.

Many people think they have a bad telephone voice. While it's true that not every one's voicesounds like a radio announcer's voice, very few people have a terrible voice. What they haveis a badly produced voice. To sound confident and be perceived in a professional manner onthe telephone, one must pause and breathe and follow some simple maintenance tips.

A good voice requires lots of power or air. The way to get that power is by breathing from thediaphragm. Unfortunately, many people breathe shallowly. They fill their lungs only to tenpercent of their capacity. A voice that is starving for air becomes a monotone or sounds tinnyand unfriendly. Also, the ends of statements fade, and there are lots of "ums" and "ahs" as

the person drags in a quick breath of air.

To check whether you are breathing from the diaphragm, place one hand on your upper chestand one hand on your diaphragm. Take in a deep breath and notice where you feel the breathfirst. Unless you feel your diaphragm moving, you are breathing shallowly. To heighten yourawareness of how diaphragmatic breathing feels, raise your arms above your head or lieprone on a bed. The only way you will be able to breathe in these positions is from thediaphragm. To remind yourself to breathe from the diaphragm when calling a client or acustomer, place your hand on your diaphragm. Your diaphragm should move like bellowswhile you are talking.

To keep a voice sounding terrific for the entire conversation, take frequent pauses to breathe.

It will improve your voice dramatically. Suddenly, it will sound rich and resonant. A one or two -second pause at the end of a statement or at the end of a thought is ample. The additionalbenefit of pausing is that your articulation will be clearer since you will have time to enunciateevery syllable in the word. Pausing will also eliminate non-words, like "ah" or "um" that make aperson sound unsure. Most importantly, it will give you time to formulate your thoughts andmake compelling statements.

Besides pausing and breathing, it is important to pay attention to posture. The lungs are thelargest organ in your body, and they can't move properly if they are restricted. When talking toa customer, make sure your feet are flat on the floor under your chair and that your arms areon the desk rather than crossed on your chest. If you are nervous, consider standing up andwalking around. It will help you to release energy and to breathe.

Also, try gesturing. It will bring more air into the lungs, and the voice will sound moreenthusiastic. The client never wants to feel you don't care. If you are tired, gesturing is agreat way to get your own energy level up and to get you back into the conversation.

People want you to sound like you like your job so make sure you are smiling and that youkeep a mirror by your phone. Smiling will cause the tone of your voice to sound warmer. As youlook in the mirror, notice how far you open your mouth when you talk and whether you use bothyour upper and lower lips. Lazy lips and a mouth that hardly opens create a badly producedvoice.


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Lastly, drink lots of water. Avoid caffeinated drinks that pull moisture from the vocal cords.Avoid having milk in your coffee or eating cream cheese on your bagels right before you startyour calls. Dairy product cause mucus, and you will constantly be clearing your voice.

Those who are radio announcers have learned the importance of pausing and breathing. Theyhave also mastered how to maintain their voice all day long. Many of your customers only

know you through your voice. Make sure it creates the image that you want.

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Exercise 10: Vowel Sounds Exercise

Directions: This exercise can be given individually or as a whole depending on the numberof participants. Read the following loud and clear.

agebackbearbeerbentbit

bonebook

boughtbreakbroil

brokebrownbruiseburstbushbuy

camecheatchoicecrowncubecupdad

dawndeardeepwearturntruth

dinedoubtdue

edgefell

floodfraudfrozefusegain

gauzegear

guyhearheardheathelphid

hookhop

houselawlose

lunch

missmudnod

nonetubeteeth

oiloutpeerpewpin

prizeprosepushrainrarerightroad

rocksaidsandserveshoe

sirskullsoil

soupspare

speechspot

squarestickstockstoodtaxtoy

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Exercise 11: Consonant Sounds ExerciseDirections: This exercise can be given individually or as a whole depending onthe number of participants. Read the following loud and clear:

Beginning

Babybib

darkdeepfacefinegate

gamehousehalelame

limematemeatnevernavelpaperpatriotraiserainsobsoulteam

tablethink

thoughtverbvile

woodwearyyeastyellowzonezest

Middle

Lobsterrobbertoddlermuddlecoffeediffer

daggerfragmentmishap

mahoganylollipoplullaby

mammalmemorytendermanner

lepertempernourishcordialbossyhissingpetty

matterCatholicempathic

neverfeverlower

flowinglayoutcrayonnozzleresolve

End

Crabslablandbandsafeleafcragstag

hospitalhealth

callbail

loomzoomleanthin

tip liploafer

breakerharnessrecessmatte

set

mathsouthcurveleavebowtowclaysay

buzzmaze

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Exercise 25: Listening #10Directions: Divide the class into groups of three or four. Ask each group to identify waysto overcome the listening barriers listed on the handout. (Time: 15-20

minutes) Listening Barriers

Being a good listener means identifying and overcoming barriers. Review the followingbarriers to listening, and consider what you would do to overcome them. For example,if you had a poor connection on the telephone, you would overcome this barrier bycalling the customer back.

Noisy work space

Visual distractions

Tiredness

Customer speaks too fast or has an accent

Customer speaks too slowly or too much

Communication is unclear, poorly organized, or includes unfamiliar terms

Expectations about the communication (for example, you think you know what the otherperson is going to say)

Stress or mental restlessness

Customer uses emotionally charged words or statements

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Exercise 27: Reading Comprehension Exercise #1

Directions: Read the following short article and encircle your answers to thequestions below.

Life Saver

Back in 1912, chocolate maker Clarence Crane had a problem. His chocolatedidnt ship well in hot weather, so candy stores ordered almost none betweenJune and September. To stay in business, Crane decided to develop asummer line: hard candy mints.

Cranes factory wasnt set up for making hard candy, so he hired a pillmanufacturer for the job. Most mint candies at that time were square and pillowshaped and expensive to produce. So Crane ordered his flat and round, witha hole in the middle, to be different.

They look like little lifesavers! Crane said. Suddenly, the mints had a name.

Still for Crane the candies were only a sideline. When New York ad salesmanEdward John Noble tried to persuade him to advertise the unique mints,Crane wasnt interested.

Youd make a fortune! Noble enthused.

Think so?Crane replied. You buy the brand. For $2900, Noble did wentto work. Why only sell in candy shops? The salesman asked himself. Hepersuaded drugstores and restaurants to put the mints near the cash registerwith a big 5-cent card. Be sure every customer gets a nickel with his change.He told them.

His marketing idea worked. Customers impulsively flipped their nickel back tothe clerk, and Life Savers familiar little roll became one of the worlds best sellingcandies.

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Life Saver Questions:

1) When did Clarence Crane decided to make the hard candy mints?a. Summer of 1912b. 1912c. between June and September

d. none of the above

2) Why were pill manufacturers hired to make the mints?a. Cranes factory wasnt set up for making hard mint candies.b. Because most mint candies that time were shaped like some of

the pills, square or pillow shaped.c. Because pill manufacturers can make the candies flat and round as

Crane ordered.d. Pill manufacturers could produce more candies.

3) Why wasnt Crane interested in advertising the mints when E.J. Noblepersuaded him to do so?

a. Chocolates sell faster than the hard mint candies.b. Because the hard mints were only a sideline for him.c. He didnt believe in the market for mint candies.d. None of the above.

4) Why did E.J. Nobles marketing idea worked for the LifeSavers?a. He did not only sell them in candy shops.b. He persuaded drugstores and restaurants to put the mints near the

cash register with a big 5-Cent card.c. He made sure every customer gets a nickel with his change so that

they could buy the candies.d. All of the above.

5) Whats the best title for this article?a. A Noble Marketing Idea that Ruled the Worldb. Cranes Life Saversc. How the Life Savers Got its Named. Life Savers vs. Chocolates

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Exercise 28: Reading Comprehension Exercise #2

Directions: Read the following short article and encircle your answers tothe questions below.

Walkman

To the Sony engineers who designed it, the Walkman was not quite what theywanted. They were aiming for something different a stereophonic version ofSonys Pressman, a portable, mono tape recorder that had become astandard for journalists in the 1970s.

In 1978, Sony engineers started shrinking stereo components into the samechassis. They could fit into playback parts and two tiny speakers, but notthe recording mechanism. Still, the sound quality was good, and theengineers started playing cassettes on the prototype while they worked.

One day, Masaru Ibuka, Sonys co-founder, wandered by and heard the smallstereo. The innovative engineer recalled a project being developed elsewherein the company lightweight headphones.

What if you got rid of the speakers and combined your stereo with theheadphones? asked Ibuka. The headphones would use less powerand increase the quality of the sound.

The engineers listened politely. But why make a tape recorder that couldntrecord? And who would want to listen to music through headphones?

Sonys marketing department was also unenthusiastic. The 1979 roll-out was alow-budget affair aimed at teenagers. Then young professionals discoveredthe new invention. Perfect for jogging or commuting, small enough to fit into abriefcase or the pocket of a business suit, the Walkman became a ragingsuccess.

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Walkman Questions:

1) What was the Walkman for the Sony engineers?a. an accidental discoveryb. very useless piece of equipmentc. not quite what they actually wanted

d. a stereophonic version of Sonys Pressman

2) When did the Walkman come into life?a. When Sony engineers started shrinking stereo components into a

small chassis.b. When headphones were used with them.c. When they had play back parts and 2 tiny speakers fit into the

chassis.d. All of the above.

3) Why were the engineers of Sony unenthusiastic about the Walkman project?a. For them its only a tape recorder that cannot even record.

b. They think that people wouldnt want to listen to music throughheadphones.

c. Its a low budget gadget aimed at teenagers, therefore sales would becomparably low.

d. B and C only.

4) Why is the Walkman perfect for yuppies?a. because its affordableb. Its perfect entertainment while working in the office.c. Perfect for Jogging or Commuting.d. All of the above

5) Whats the best title for this article?a. Masaru Ibukas Inventionb. How the Walkman Got up and Runningc. Stereo in You Bagd. Unwanted Invention

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Band-Aid Questions:

1. Josephine Dickson was the wife of Earle Dickson, co-owner Johnson &Johnson.

a. True b. False

2. Earle himself made the dressings and surgical tape his wife useswhenever she cuts or burns herself.

a. True b. False

3. The first Band-Aid bandages from Johnson & Johnson were machinemade, cut into strips 3 inches wide and 18 inches long.

a. True b. False

4. Johnson & Johnson made it more convenient for buyers by hand cutting thestrips into todays familiar 3 inch by quarter inch size.

a. True b. False

5. Whats the best title for this article?a. Cure for Mrs. Dicksonb. Earles Bandagesc. How our Cuts Got Coveredd. The Johnson & Johnson Phenomenal Aid

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Exercise 30: Capitalization Exercise

Directions: rewrite the following sentence using correct capitalization:

To: jennifer smith From: john miller

Fax: Pages: 1Phone: Date: february 4th, 2000

Re: Postponed business trip

hello jennifer,

thank you for calling this morning to reschedule our meeting. i was sorryto hear that your business trip to new york has been postponed, but amlooking forward to seeing you in march. my colleague, laura, will pick youup from jfk at 10:00 on monday, march sixth and bring you to your hotel.

why dont we plan to have lunch together that afternoon? we can catch upon news and i will fill you in on the project development. please let meknow and i will reserve a table at tavern on the green in central park.

i am looking forward to seeing you,

john

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Exercise 31: Spelling Exercise #1Directions: Underline the correct answer.

1. (Where, Were, Wear) is my jacket? I wanted to (where, were, wear) it today, and if Ican't find it, (where, were, wear) going to be late.

2. Jane wanted (to, two, too) go on the school trip, but her mother said that (to,two, too) hundred dollars was (to, two, too) much for the family budget.

3. As she waited for Rodney to become (conscious, conscience), Selma was seizedwith an attack of (conscious, conscience) -- was there anything she could havedoneto prevent the accident?

4. The map (led, lead) the intrepid treasure hunters to a (led, lead) box ofprecious stones.

5. Have you seen (their, they're, there) coats? (Their, They're, There) going to needthem; it's cold outside. I last saw the coats over (their, they're, there).

6. After conducting careful research, Shufang had a brilliant (idea, ideal); she'd writea paper on Thomas More's concept of the (idea, ideal) society in Utopia.

7. Even though Bob would rather play video games (than, then) study, he decided to hitthe books and (than, then) play some Halo.

8. (It's, Its) easy to admire a business that puts so much effort into creating (it's,its)signs and window displays.

9. (You're, Your) fortunate to have survived the car crash without a scratch; itmust have been because you were wearing (you're, your) seat belt.

10. I would (advise, advice) you to seek qualified legal (advise, advice) about how tohandle this situation.

Exercise 32: Spelling Exercise #2

Directions: Write in either ie or ei to complete the words in these sentences.

1. There are ght candles on the cake.2. I have not rec ved a letter since Saturday.3. Have you ever been on a sl gh ride?4. Her n ce is going to come to gr f.5. She shr ked in surprise when he dropped the ice cube down her back.6. Drop that silver, you th f!7. He's the most conc_ ted man I know.8. I don't bel ve he is so conc_ ted.9. As he was dying, the ch f asked for a pr st.10. Leave the mouse a p ce of cheese.11. Brevity is the soul of wit; therefore, be br f.

12. The fr ght train woke the n ghbors.

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Exercise 33: Punctuation Marks Exercise

Directions: Put in semicolons, colons, dashes, quotation marks, Italics (use anunderline), and parentheses where ever they are needed in the followingsentences.

1. The men in question Harold Keene, Jim Peterson, and Gerald Greenedeserve awards.

2. Several countries participated in the airlift Italy, Belgium, France, and Luxembourg.

3. Only one course was open to us surrender, said the ex-major, and we did.

4. Judge Carswell later to be nominated for the Supreme Court had ruled againstcivil rights.

5. In last week's New Yorker, one of my favorite magazines, I enjoyed readingLeland's article How Not to Go Camping.

6. Yes, Jim said, I'll be home by ten.

7. There was only one thing to do study till dawn.

8. Montaigne wrote the following A wise man never loses anything, if he has himself.

9. The following are the primary colors red, blue, and yellow.

10. Arriving on the 8 10 plane were Liz Brooks, my old roommate her husband andTim, their son.

11. When the teacher commented that her spelling was poor, Lynn replied Allthe members of my family are poor spellers. Why not me?

12. He used the phrase you know so often that I finally said No, I don't know.

13. The automobile dealer handled three makes of cars Volkswagens, Porsches, andMercedes Benz.

14. Though Phil said he would arrive on the 9 19 flight, he came instead on the 1036 flight.

15. Whoever thought said Helen that Jack would be elected class president?

16. In baseball a show boat is a man who shows off.

17. The minister quoted Isaiah 5 21 in last Sunday's sermon.

18. There was a very interesting article entitled The New Rage for Folk Singing in lastSunday's New York Times newspaper.

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19. Whoever is elected secretary of the club Ashley, or Chandra, or Aisha mustbe prepared to do a great deal of work, said Jumita, the previous secretary.

20. Darwin's On the Origin of Species 1859 caused a great controversy whenit appeared.

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Module1 Student Exercises